| OVERVIEW This Spring, the Biden Administration announced plans to move marijuana from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to Schedule III of the CSA. This does not mean marijuana is legalized, but if implemented, moving marijuana to Schedule III would be a boon to the marijuana industry and further accelerate the proliferation of high-potency marijuana products in communities across the country. The Biden Administration, through the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), has initiated a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which means that the public now has the opportunity to submit comments to the federal register. CADCA’s legislative alert will allow you to directly submit comments to the Federal register. All comments must be submitted by July 22, 2024. |
| ISSUE BACKGROUND On August 29, 2023, Admiral Rachel L. Levine, M.D., Assistant Secretary for Health and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommended to the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Anne Milgram, that “botanical cannabis” (i.e., marijuana) be moved from Schedule I to Schedule III of the CSA. This recommendation goes against established science and medical practices and is a danger to public health. CADCA opposes the rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. Many marijuana products today have incredibly high THC concentrations. “Normal” marijuana contains 12% to 20% THC while marijuana concentrates average 39% to 69% THC (Bidwell et al. 2021, Drug and Alcohol Review) and some dispensaries advertise products with 99.99% THC. Although the marijuana industry markets and heavily advertises high THC products as medicine, there has been absolutely no research supporting the use of wax, shatter or high THC vape oil for any medical purposes. This has caused both youth and adults to believe these products are safe. A new study in the Journal of Pediatrics found that instances of children under the age of six accidentally ingesting marijuana has jumped 1,375% from 2017 to 2021, climbing from 200 per year to more than 3,000 per year (Marit et al., 2023). Furthermore, marijuana users are 25% more likely to need emergency care and hospitalization (Vozoris et al., 2022). Safety is a major concern as traffic fatalities, psychosis, suicide, violence, depression, mania, maternal-fetal harms, and addiction have been associated with the use of botanical marijuana (Mohiuddin et al, 2021). Research shows that marijuana use changes the structure of the brain and heavy, lifelong use can result in IQ loss (Hill & Hsu, 2022). Botanical marijuana use can lead to intractable vomiting – Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome (Rhia et al., 2023). |
| SAMPLE MESSAGE I am writing to express my opposition to the recommendation to move botanical marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Rescheduling marijuana would exacerbate the public health harms caused by marijuana. Although the marijuana industry markets high THC products as medicine, there has been no research supporting the use of wax, shatter or high THC vape oil for medical purposes. This has caused both youth and adults to believe these products are safe. A study in the Journal of Pediatrics found that instances of children under the age of six accidentally ingesting marijuana has jumped 1,375% from 2017 to 2021, climbing from 200 per year to more than 3,000 per year. Marijuana users are 25% more likely to need emergency care and hospitalization. Marijuana use is very concerning in young people, a factor HHS failed to adequately address. The National Center for Education Statistics said, “adolescent marijuana use has been associated with lower academic performance and a higher risk of dropping out of high school”. Colorado warns, “Youth who use marijuana regularly are more likely to have a hard time learning, problems remembering, and lower math and reading scores. These effects can last weeks after the last time they used marijuana” Recognizing that much remains unknown about marijuana, the National Institute on Drug Abuse noted, “researchers are still studying how long marijuana’s effects last and whether some changes may be permanent”. Marijuana use is at an all-time high. Teen use of marijuana is at 30- year high, with more teens reporting smoking marijuana than tobacco. Among young adults 19 to 30, 26% used in the past month compared to 17% in 2011, and 11% were daily users, up from 6% in 2011. The recommendation from HHS failed to take into account actual/relative potential for abuse or harms associated with use. Marijuana can be addictive; In fact, as many as 1 in 3 past year marijuana users met the clinical criteria for Cannabis Use Disorder. According to research at Massachusetts General Hospital, “using cannabis products to treat pain, anxiety and depression failed to improve these symptoms while doubling the risk of developing the addictive symptoms of cannabis use disorder”. Research shows that marijuana use changes the structure of the brain and heavy, lifelong use can result in IQ loss. With the exception of one study of medical marijuana patients in Maryland, the review from HHS failed to consider the link between marijuana and psychosis. Daily users of marijuana over 10% THC are nearly five times more likely to develop a psychotic disorder than non-users. A 2023 study in Denmark determined that 30 percent of cases of schizophrenia among 21–30-year-old males could have been averted if cannabis use disorder had been prevented. Since botanical cannabis did not meet previous criteria for currently accepted medical use (CAMU), HHS pretextually changed the definition of CAMU Even using this broader definition, botanical cannabis fails to meet CAMU criteria. “Widespread” implies that the drug is broadly accepted and utilized within the medical community, but this is not the case. HHS states that 30,000 licensed health care practitioners (LHCPs) are authorized to recommend the use of marijuana, but this number represents fewer than 3% of LHCPs with prescriptive authority. As evidence of “some scientific support for one medical use”, HHS states that science supports botanical cannabis for “anorexia related to a medical condition; nausea and vomiting (e.g., chemotherapy-induced); and pain”. HHS conflates isolated cannabinoids and crude cannabis products. It does not follow that botanical cannabis – with multiple active chemicals – will have the same effect as medications with small, specified doses of a single active chemical. While dronabinol has been shown to alleviate symptoms of nausea and vomiting, botanical marijuana use can lead to intractable vomiting – Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome. Safety is a major concern as traffic fatalities, psychosis, suicide, violence, depression, mania, maternal-fetal harms, and addiction have been associated with the use of botanical marijuana. Marijuana use is also associated with cardiovascular health issues. According to the American Heart Association, marijuana use without tobacco use can increase heart disease risk by 300% Furthermore, heart attacks are twice as likely in young adults who used marijuana. Unlike other drugs in Schedule III, marijuana is not FDA approved to treat or cure any disease and it is not available for prescription in any state. I encourage you to follow the science and public health evidence on this issue and keep marijuana in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. |
| WHAT YOU CAN DO Provide the comments in the sample message below to the Department of Justice (DOJ) urging the Drug Enforcement Administration NOT to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. All comments must be submitted by July 22, 2024. WHY IT’S CRITICAL It is critical that the DEA receive as many comments against this rescheduling as possible, as the number of comments will make a difference in the final decision that is made. HOW TO DO IT CADCA’s legislative alerts use your home address to send messages to government officials. All of these messages will be submitted to the DEA through the Federal Register using your home address. Click “Send Comment” in the box on the right to send the sample message below to the Department of Justice urging the Drug Enforcement Administration not to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. |
| Visit cadca.org to learn more about our substance use prevention advocacy efforts! |